Mammatus
Mammatus (from Latin breast-like ; abbreviation: mam , short form mamma , plural Mammaten ) are bag-like formations hanging on the underside of clouds. The special form occurs most often on the anvil or umbrella of the cumulonimbus , but it can also be observed in cirrus , cirrocumulus , altocumulus , altostratus and stratocumulus as well as the ash clouds from erupting volcanoes . Mammates usually have smooth, laminar structures, but those on cirrus clouds in particular can also appear irregular. The vertical extent also varies depending on the cloud on which the mammates form. The main prerequisites for the formation of mammatus clouds are the current temperature and humidity gradients as well as the existing wind shear .
Mammates are generally little-researched weather phenomena. There are various theories about their origins, none of which have been proven. One of the best-known theories says that mammates are created by evaporation processes on the underside of the cloud, when the air layer under the cloud is cooled and labilized, which in turn creates buoyancy, which ultimately leads to the formation of the mammatus.
Mammats appear up to ten times more frequently in summer than in winter and can be recognized and observed with the help of Doppler radar systems.
Mammatus in Tulsa , June 2, 1973
Mammatus clouds over Sinsheim , March 20, 2013
Mammatus over Braunschweig , October 19, 2014
Mammatus over Pressbaum, June 3, 2020
Total view
Web links
- Mammatus clouds over Nebraska - Astronomy Picture of the Day from April 15, 2014.
- Mammatus clouds over Saskatchewan - Astronomy Picture of the Day of October 18, 2015.
- badische-zeitung.de , May 15, 2015: Photos: The most impressive pictures of the Mammatus clouds by BZ readers
- René Pelzer, eifelmomente.de: Threading Mammati at sunset ( time-lapse , May 30, 2010 Deep Bergthora , Nordeifel )